Although there was a big break in the rain during the day on Sunday, surfers, bicyclists, cars and visitors to Fort Point on Sunday got drenched by the huge waves breaking over the barrier and onto the cars. Photo By Lea Suzuki less

Although there was a big break in the rain during the day on Sunday, surfers, bicyclists, cars and visitors to Fort Point on Sunday got drenched by the huge waves breaking over the barrier and onto the cars. ... more

Photo: LEA SUZUKI

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Although there was a big break in the rain during the day on Sunday. One surfer trying to enter the water on the rocks at Fort Point steadies himself against a pounding wave as two other surfers bob on the waves in the distance.. Surfers, bicyclists, cars and visitors to Fort Point on Sunday got drenched by the huge waves breaking over the barrier and onto the cars. Photo By Lea Suzuki

Although there was a big break in the rain during the day on Sunday. One surfer trying to enter the water on the rocks at Fort Point steadies himself against a pounding wave as two other surfers bob on the

At the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Golf Tournament, the final round of play was suspended at 10:30 a.m. when high winds and heavy rains sent golfers and spectators running for cover.

Play was resumed briefly, but another downpour in the afternoon made the course a sloppy mess. They called it a day at 2 p.m. The final round is scheduled to resume at 8 a.m. today.

The Sierra received about two inches of snow as low as 5,000 feet, and rainfall in the rest of the Bay Area ranged from as little as half an inch in San Francisco to as much as two inches in the North Bay.

Westbound Interstate 80 was closed east of Highway 37 for about an hour yesterday morning after an accident involving a tractor-trailer and five cars blocked the road.

By late evening, there were still delays of up to an hour on flights west of Denver.

Yesterday's rain prompted urban and small stream advisories for Napa, Sonoma and Marin counties and heavy surf advisories stretching from the Oregon border to San Luis Obispo.

The storm forecast for today is expected to hit hardest this afternoon, drenching the Bay Area with two to three inches in many areas. Total rainfall could reach five to 10 inches in Monterey and the Santa Cruz mountains.

"It'll definitely be the worst we've seen so far," said Duane Dykema, forecaster for the National Weather Service in Monterey. He said the storm is similar to one that thrashed the area in March 1995 and resulted in major flooding.

And while Bay Area residents try to keep their feet dry, they'll have to struggle to hold onto their rain hats and umbrellas.

Winds of 20 to 40 miles an hour are expected to whipsaw the region with gusts as strong as 60 miles an hour along the coast.

The storm is one of a series moving in from the west -- and as such, it falls into a distinct category separate from the chilly fronts that come from the Gulf of Alaska and the more southerly subtropical downpours linked to El Nino.

The hard-hitting storm is expected to last through the night. Scattered showers were expected tomorrow, with a break on Wednesday and more dreary, wet weather on Thursday.

The current storm is riding a jet stream that is moving at an astonishing speed of 190 knots, according to KCBS meteorologist Mike Pechner of Golden West Meteorology.

"The wind is moving across the Pacific at breakneck speed," he said.

So far, the Bay Area has been spared the devastating floods of January 1997 because the storms have come in like a persistent underdog fighter -- pummeling the area with small punches, backing off to regroup and then coming back for more.

"We've dodged the bullet so far because there's been some clearing between storms," Pechner said.

"The cumulative effect at some point is going to cause problems," he said, forecasting mud and rock slides.

In the Sierra, there will be winter storm warnings this afternoon with one to two feet of snow expected above 7,000 feet.